An Unexpected Happening
by Rein Elanor
Summary: Several people suddenly find themselves in Middle Earth. What will Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas think of Hermione and Snape, not to mention Obi Wan and Padme. A fun look at what might have been. SSHG, Obidala.
1. Chapter 1

An Unexpected Happening

Rein Elanor

Disclaimer: It's pretty safe to say that nothing in this story belongs to me. I do not own Star Wars, I do not own Harry Potter, and I certainly do not own The Lord of the Rings. I just put them in my cauldron of a brain and mixed them up.

A/N: This story is a triple crossover. It was written in a series of snatched moment, either before sleep, during work breaks, or before class starts. I apologize deeply for it. It seemed like a good idea at the time, and it still amuses me. So I thought it might amuse at least one other person.

"What the hell do you think you're doing with those mermaid toenails?"

The voice rang out through the dungeons and Hermione Granger gritted her teeth. He couldn't just take it like a man, could he? No, Severus Snape _had_ to make her life a living hell just because Albus Dumbledore saw fit to make her his apprentice.

Through gritted teeth, the young woman explained, "I'm putting the toenails in the bowl, _sir_. So I can grind them up. The potions calls for a fine powder of mermaid toenails, I believe?" she asked acidly. She knew perfectly well that the potion called for exactly that. So did Snape. This knowledge did not improve his temper.

Severus Snape was a man accustomed to solitude. He liked to work in a quiet environment _by himself_. Ever since Albus had forced the bushy-haired, bright-eyed young know-it-all on him, he had found his dungeon haven filled with aggravation.

"You are too disrespectful by half, Miss Granger," he hissed, getting right up in her face. "Insubordination might have been acceptable while you were in University, but it will not be tolerated while you are my pupil."

He was standing quite close to her now, his greasy black hair falling over his face, and his nose almost touching hers.

Her brown eyes blazed back at him. "Would you mind not standing so close, sir?" she spat. "I respectfully tell you that you smell none too fresh."

Snape's face went white with rage. "How dare you," he hissed.

Hermione actually did look a little bit frightened at what had popped out of her mouth. She tried to take a step back, away from the tall man before her.

His hands reached out and grasped her thin shoulders. She tensed, readying herself for a blow. It never came.

He had been ready to shake her until her teeth rattled, but he paused before commencing his punishment. There was no need for Hermione to wonder what had stopped him, either.

Brown eyes met black ones. Both faces wore a tense, set look- Hermione's young, lightly freckled face, and Snape's pale, thin face- both wore identical looks of intent listening.

"Do- do you hear that?" Hermione whispered.

"Draw your wand." The command was curt, not to mention unnecessary. Both wands were already drawn.

"It sounds like…a thousand giants, running, shouting. It sounds like they're right in the room-"

Hermione's words were cut off as a jerk behind her naval pulled her right out of the Hogwarts dungeons. She fell to the ground in bright sunlight, right on top of Snape.

"Blast."

Obi-Wan Kenobi's voice was grating on Padmé's nerves. It was too calm, too well-modulated, and the accent was too perfect.

"What's gone wrong with the ship this time, O Vaulted Jedi Master?" She inquired acidly, turning in the chair she was sitting in.

They were in the cockpit of her own Nubian ship, three days out on an important mission. An important mission that was going horribly wrong already.

"Is it the power cuplinks? The reverse thruster? The voltage compensator?" She continued, her light brown eyes boring into the back of his head.

He turned in his chair to face her. "It's the navicomputer, if you must know, Senator. And I don't think you need get all high and mighty with me. I didn't cause all these problems with _your_ ship." His clear blue eyes were calm, but his lips tightened, showing his frustration.

Padmé's hackles were rising. After three days of his coolness, she longed for a good verbal fight.

"Are you accusing me of not taking care of my ship, Jedi?" She growled, standing up. "Because I never had a problem with her before your holiness arrived on board and started flying like a Tusken Raider."

He took a deep breath, visibly calming himself and letting go of his anger. It would do him no good to fight about something so trivial.

"Senator Amidala, I was making no accusations. I am sure you take very good care of your ship. But we _do_ need to fix the navicomputer, or we'll be stuck here for a long time."

If anything, the Jedi's calmness infuriated Padmé more. "Oh, yes, because _you're always_ right, aren't you?" She was deliberately goading him, and he knew it. Standing, he walked over to her chair and knelt before her.

He laid a hand on hers, and said quietly, "I'm sorry that I annoy you, Padmé. I know you're upset over what's going on with Anakin, but the mission-"

Obi-Wan stopped in mid-sentence. Both he and Padmé were listening intently to something.

"Do you…" he began.

"Yes, I hear it," she whispered. "What is it?"

"It sounds like drums- and I hear voices calling…What!"

Padmé and Obi-Wan both felt their feet lift off the steel deck of the ship. They landed on quite a different surface in bright sunlight.

Aragorn had been running for three days. He was determined to find the young hobbits, even if it meant dying on the way. However, he didn't think it would come to that. He was a very good runner. That's why he was so surprised when he tripped over four bodies.

"What on Gideon's Green…"Hermione started to say, trying to sit up.

"Oopff." She heard. She got off Snape in a hurry. She had just straightened up to get a look around where they were when two more people fell on top of her, and sent her back onto Snape. She didn't even have time to see what the two newcomers looked like when a fifth person joined their unexpected party on the ground.

Everything was a tangle of arms and legs and boots and hair until they struggled to their feet.

Then Hermione saw the other members of the group. There was Snape, of course, dressed in billowing black, with his greasy black hair blowing about his face in the wind.

Then there were the two who had fallen onto Hermione, a man and a woman. The man had very clear, very blue eyes, a handsome face, broad shoulders, and reddish-brown hair. He was wearing a strange tunic thing and a robe. The girl was quite thin, and was wearing a skin-tight white jumpsuit. Her shining brown hair was smooth, and tied up in an elaborate braid.

Hermione herself was suddenly conscious of her worn jeans and ragged T-shirt, not to mention her bushy hair. She looked at the man who had tripped over them. He was quite tall, with a chiseled jaw and a fine nose. His dark hair was ragged with grit and sweat, and he wore a green cloak and what appeared to be a medieval weapons arsenal.

Everyone had been staring at one another until two more people came jogging up. Hermione stared incredulously.

One of the newcomers was very slender, and dressed all in green and brown. He had long blond hair and steel blue eyes, with a very lovely and fine face. Hermione thought he looked a bit of a priss.

The other was a very short and stout, with a great beard that reached almost to his waist. He wore heavy boots and carried an axe. He was definitely a dwarf. It was completely obvious.

Snape looked like he, too, was evaluating their present company. Hermione could tell by the way his dark eyes narrowed and the thin lines around his mouth stood out that he was not pleased, and actually a little frightened. He had no idea where they were, either. Their eyes met, and Hermione found herself actually moving a little closer to him. They were obviously in a strange world, and Snape was the only thing in it she knew.

The man with reddish brown hair wearing the tunic was the first to speak. His voice, a pleasant tenor, was calm, but there was no denying the slight fear that lurked just beneath the surface.

"If someone has an explanation, I would be very glad to hear it."

Everyone looked at him. No one seemed able to speak. Snape rolled his eyes- NOW the Granger girl became tongue-tied.

"Can anyone tell me where we are?" Snape asked, folding his arms in full professor mode.

The tall, sweaty man with the sword spoke up. "You are approaching the borders of Rohan. You are in Middle Earth."

Hermione noticed that for all his scruffy appearance, he had regal features and wonderful eyes. She stared at him for a bit.

"And who are you?" asked the girl in the white jumpsuit. There was a certain authority in her words. She sounded used to wielding power.

"I am called Strider," the man answered, bowing slightly. He indicated the blond fellow and the dwarf. "These are my companions- Legolas the elf, son of Thranduil of Mirkwood, and Gimli the dwarf, son of Gloin." He stopped, and studied the strangers. "And now," he said, a hint of steel in his voice, "I would ask who you are."

The man in brown who had spoken first stepped forward. "I am General Obi-Wan Kenobi, Jedi Master. Senator Amidala," He indicated the woman in white, "and I are on a mission for the Republic Senate."

Senator Amidala looked a little annoyed. Hermione supposed it was because Kenobi had jumped forward to do the introductions when she felt it to be her job.

Hermione understood her frustration as Snape stepped forward. "I am Severus Snape, Potions Master at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This is Hermione Granger," he said, waving a careless hand in her direction. "My apprentice."

"Assistant," she corrected, with a growl. "I am a Potions Mistress in my own right, as well as being a fully trained Auror."

Strider's eyes were crinkled in amusement, but his voice was still serious as he said, "I haven't heard how you came to fall from the sky. Are you a weapon of Saruman, sent to stall us from our mission?"

"Toto, I don't think we're in Kansas anymore," Hermione muttered. But no one else got the joke.

Speaking aloud, she said, "Sir, we are just as confused and lost as you are. We have no idea how we got here, and even less of who or what you refer to."

She saw Senator Amidala nod in agreement. Kenobi opened his mouth to say something, perhaps to explain how they had come from the deck of Padmé's ship to the grassy ridge they now stood on.

But Legolas the elf spoke before the Jedi Master could. "The Rohirrhim!" he cried quietly. "My Lord Ara-…er….Strider, they approach from the West!" His fair face was peering off into the distance, eyes keen, and he seemed to be blushing.

Obi-Wan supposed it was because he had called Strider his "Lord Ara- something". Obviously this Strider was more than he said.

Obi-Wan noticed the man in black, Snape, was staring intently at the Senator at his side. The man's dark eyes seemed to be boring into Padmé's face. Obi-Wan could feel the man's power- he was looking into her mind!

The Jedi stepped between Snape and the Senator. Snape sneered a bit as he read the challenge in Kenobi's blue eyes. Obi-Wan heard him mutter something, and he put up his defenses just in time to block Snape's invasion, at the same time reaching for his lightsaber.

Just at this moment, Hermione, who had been gazing into the West with the elf to see what all the fuss was about, finally turned around and looked at Snape. She recognized immediately what he was doing and felt a rush of anger at his utter stupidity and lack of tact. She also saw Ob-Wan reaching for what had to be a weapon.

"Severus!" she cried sharply, slapping his arm angrily. "What the hell do you think you're doing ?"

He stopped performing Legillimency on Obi-Wan- he hadn't gotten far, anyways. The man was a magic adept, and very skilled at Occlumency.

Snape turned a furious glare at the young chit. Obi-Wan drew his lightsaber from his belt, but didn't turn it on. Padmé already had her blaster out.

"Oh, for Cere's sake," Hermione growled, after glancing at the weapons, and glaring accusingly at Snape. "Now they'll think we're both evil, and we'll never make it home!"

Obi-Wan stared at the bushy-haired girl and the thin man. They were an odd pair. Snape's sense was absolutely guarded. Obi-Wan could tell that he'd seen darkness and still kept its marks. The girl, however, was pure- an innocent. Her anger was not rage- not that dangerous, all-consuming fire. She felt that her companion had made a mistake, and she was bent on taking him to task for it.

As her voice was ringing out over the surrounding hills, Obi-Wan decided he liked her. She was headstrong, but essentially good.

Obi-Wan felt Padmé touch his sleeve, He glanced at her, and saw that she was looking at the three odd people who seemed to belong in the strange place to which they had come.

The three were deep in conversation, Gimli the dwarf making violent motions with his hands. Obi-Wan could sense their fear, their impatience. They were waiting for something.

"I've got a bad feeling about this, " he muttered to Padme. "Let's try to get out of here."

She nodded, but glanced first at the other couple. Hermione was still shouting; something about 'schoolboy grudges' and 'ridiculous manners'.

"I think we should get them to come with us," she said. "We should stay together- it might help us to get home, and even to survive out here."

Obi-Wan nodded. Whatever he felt about Severus Snape, he could also feel the Force pushing him and Padmé towards the other two.

While Hermione was running down the list of Snape's horrendous faults, he himself was gazing over her bushy head at the Jedi and the Senator. Kenobi and the woman were discussing something. Snape's eyes narrowed.

"And there's no reason to dress like every day is a bloody funeral!" Hermione shrilled. "Honestly, would a hint of green or blue _kill_ you?"

Snape stiffened. However, it was not in reaction to Hermione's fashion criticism. He had just heard Kenobi's voice in his head. Apart from himself and Albus Dumbledore, he knew no one that advanced in Legillimency. He decided to do as Kenobi said, if only to find out more.

"You're practically a forty-year-old man! I mean, get _over_ it already!" Hermione was saying. But she was cut off rather suddenly as Snape grabbed her. With one hand on her wrist, he spun her around and flush against him. His other hand clapped over her mouth.

"We're leaving," he hissed. "We're going with Kenobi and the Senator. Shut your mouth for one bloody minute." He was whispering in her ear, and she could feel his breath on her neck. Snape had started walking, putting the hand that had been on her wrist on her left shoulder. He guided her forward, finally pulling his hand from her mouth.

Kenobi and Amidala were making their way quickly and quietly down the ridge. Snape and Hermione were not fat behind when Legolas the elf ran up.

His silvery blue eyes looked troubled. "Please, you must stay with us. You have no idea of the dangers of this world."

Snape was inclined to sneer at the elf, but Hermione pointed down the hill. "Look!" she whispered.

There were tracks on the grass- or what was left of the grass. Whatever had passed had been many and violent. Snape could see Obi-Wan down the hill, studying the marks.

Strider was somehow with them. He must be a swift and silent runner. Gimli the dwarf came up behind him. "We'd better get into hiding pretty fast," he said in a voice like an axe hitting stone. "The Riders are nearing."

The Senator was already on her way back up the hill, engaged in conversation with Strider. Obi-Wan walked behind them, looking doubtful.

Legolas was still standing by Hermione. "My lady, we must get under cover." His voice was in earnest. Hermione nodded, though Snape rather thought it was the elf's blue eyes and long blond hair that decided the chit to trust him.

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A/N: Please tell me what you think so far. There's a lot more of this story in a notebook. I just have to type it. Tell me if it's worth it or not, and I'll continue based on your response. The plan for the story is to take the four offworlders (Snape, Hermione, Obi-Wan, and Padmé) with Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas to the Battle of Helm's Deep. I wanted to see what the Force, Padmé's blaster, and Hogwarts magic would do at that battle. Tell me: yes or no?


	2. Chapter 2

An Unexpected Happening: Chapter Two

Rein Elanor

Disclaimer: I am not dead. Therefore, I am not the Master, J.R. R. Tolkien. I am not a big guy with a beard and a flannel shirt. Therefore, I am not George Lucas. I am not an incredibly wealthy mother of a certain number of children. Therefore, I am not J.K Rowling. So I don't own this stuff.

A/N: Oh my gosh! I am overwhelmed by the response you guys have left! I didn't know that there was such a market for crossover fics out there! I just knew that I wanted to read some, and I couldn't find any. That's actually why I started this one. I'm so glad you guys like this story, though. If it gets to be stupid or low quality, _please_ tell me so, and I'll cease to inflict this on you. But until then, on with the show!

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They sat, all seven of them, before the bottom of the hill. Gimli, Legolas, and Strider had on green cloaks that blended perfectly with the grassy land. They rather thought, however, that Snape in his unrelieved black and Padmé, in her similar white, would be a bit too obvious, so they had the two of them sit behind the others.

Before long, the riders were galloping past. Hermione's breath was taken away. The men all had bright yellow hair and flashing spears. Strider waited until they were almost past, then he stood.

"What news from the North, Riders of Rohan?"

Suddenly, faster than Hermione would have thought possible, the riders were surrounding the seven, and a hundred spears were pointed at them.

Snape's dark eyes were boring into Strider's head, obviously ready to hex him into the ground for apparently betraying them. Hermione grabbed his arm.

"It's alright, I think," she whispered. He turned his glare on her face, and then to her hand on his arm. But she didn't let go, and he didn't say anything when her hand moved to grab his.

"I came out of the North," Strider was saying. "I was hunting Orcs."

The four newcomers were trying to follow the strange conversation that was taking place between the chief horse-master and their three dubious new friends. The chief, named Èomer, asked a lot of questions about Gimli and Legolas, not to mention Strider, but strangely, seemed not to notice Obi-Wan, Hermione, Padmé, and Severus.

Padmé paid closer attention to the proceedings than the other tree. Being a diplomat, she could understand the cautious dance Strider was stepping. Èomer too seemed careful, though he was not nearly as skilled at the other. Suddenly, Strider threw back his cloak, and drew a shining sword from its sheath.

"Elendil!" He cried. "I am Aragorn son of Arathorn, and am called Elessar, the Elfstone, Dúnadan, the heir of Isildur Elendil's son of Gondor. Here is the Sword that was Broken and is forged again!"

Padmé was shocked at the once-scruffy man's change. Now he stood tall and majestic, and there was a regal light in his eyes. Padmé had been only an elected Queen, but she recognized a true King when she saw one.

She glanced at her companions. The girl Hermione was standing taller, looking proudly at Aragorn, obviously honored to be in his presence. She was only a few years younger than Padmé herself. (In truth, Hermione was only a few _months_ younger than Padmé.) Obi-Wan was looking keenly at the man who had just revealed himself to be a King. Severus Snape looked calculating.

Èomer in the end agreed to lend the seven of them horses- 4 in total- so they would continue their search.

So they had been noticed, Obi-Wean reflected, as he stared ruefully at the strange creature before him after the riders had gone. The riders had simply not assigned them enough importance for them to be concerned.

Padmé, the expert at everything, (or so it seemed sometimes to Obi-Wan) had watched Aragorn mount his horse, and then had done it perfectly herself. Obi-Wan knew that he would be sharing the horse with her, and he used the Force to jump onto the animal's back. He saw the elf give him an apprising look.

"Why do I have to be in the back?" he asked Padmé playfully. "Remember Geonosis? I think I proved myself well there, don't you?"

She glanced back at him. "Yes, I _do_ remember Geonosis. And that's why you're in the back."

Obi-Wan laughed.

Severus and Hermione were having a more difficult time of mounting their horse. Every time Snape would manage to mount his horse, the horse would rear, and kick him off. This amused Hermione so much that after the third time it happened, she was rolling on the ground in tears, in danger of being trampled.

Aragorn took pity on them at last, and he mounted the feisty horse instead. He held down a hand to Hermione, and told Snape to get on the horse he had just left.

Snape was still glaring at Aragorn and Hermione when they started off in the direction Èomer had indicated to Aragorn earlier. His thoughts dwelled on Hermione as he rode alone. Did Aragorn have to hold her so very tightly? And did she have to look like she enjoyed it so very much? She looked like a wonton hussy in that position, for Circe's sake!

"Why does your friend look so sullen?" Aragorn asked Hermione. "Is he always so ill-favoured?"

Hermione glanced over at Snape, taking in his dark scowl and set eyebrows and mouth. "Believe it or not, this is almost cheerful for him," she replied, laughing.

They rode on for a long time. Snape and Obi-Wan had to shed their similar robes. Obi-Wan now wore only his brown tunic and light pants. Snape wore a meticulously tailored frock coat and white linen shirt with black trousers. Hermione was shocked to see him wearing anything that was not black.

Eventually, the riders reached the place Èomer had mentioned, a huge smoking pile of dead bodies. Hermione turned her eyes away from the horrible faces as she dismounted her horse. Snape, of course, went to examine the bodies with Aragorn, Gimli, and Legolas. He came back with his face pale and set.

"What is it?" She asked him quietly, placing her hand on his arm in concern. He looked at her and sat down on the ground rather suddenly, with his knees bent. Obi-Wan and Padmé came and sat too. The Aragorn and the other two seemed off in a private world, concerning their quest.

"Those creatures in that smoking pile," Snape said, his voice low. "They're dreadful. I've never seen such pure malice before- especially on dead faces." His own face looked haunted.

Night was falling, and soon the three Middle Earth people came to where the four tired otherworlders were sitting huddled for warmth.

Aragorn's face, which had been so fierce and kingly only a few hours before, was drawn and sad. The elf and the dwarf seemed subdued.

"We can find no trace of our friends, and we must assume that they lie dead with the orcs."

Hermione asked Aragorn to explain about the fiends he had lost, and how they had come to be in their situation. Aragorn gave an abbreviated and censored version of events. Hermione grew teary-eyed when he told of the death of both Boromir and Gandalf.

When Aragorn was finished, he turned to Padmé. "I'd like to hear the story of your quest," he said smiling. "For I perceive that you, too, have a mission to accomplish."

Padmé smiled back, and began her story. "I was elected Queen of Naboo (my home planet) when I was only fourteen. I was not the youngest Queen ever elected, but I think I was too young."

Obi-Wan broke in. "You did a fine job of leading your people, my lady."

She smiled at him. "Well, if a Jedi Master thinks so," she teased.

Hermione glanced at Snape, to see id he would have any reaction to the blatant flirting going on. He remained stoic through the rest of Padmé's story, which detailed the war now raging in her galaxy.

Hermione had gotten used to the idea of magic, but the idea of a place filled to the brim with amazing technology was going to take even more getting used to. When Padmé finished her tale, Aragorn asked Snape and Hermione to tell their story. Hermione told her listeners about Voldemort's rise and apparent fall, and his subsequent rise to power again. She told them of the part her friend Harry Potter played in the war, and of the part Snape played. She watched Snape's face tighten at her use of Voldemort's name.

"It would appear that we shall all go down as heroes," Gimli said gracelessly, at the end of the story.

Snape's face twisted in scorn. Before he could say anything sarcastic and horrid, Hermione jumped back into the conversation.

"My, it sure has been a long day, hasn't it?" She said loudly. "I'm tired."

Padmé's diplomacy skills kicked in and she agreed with Hermione. "Yes, me too," she nodded. "I could do with altering my sleep cycle to last another three years."

Severus glanced at Hermione. He knew what she was doing, and he didn't like it one bit. He certainly didn't need some little chit supervising him and censoring his remarks.

To everyone's surprise, Aragorn agreed with Padmé and Hermione. "We should sleep. There is nothing we can do in finding our friends until morning. We ought to rest while we are able."

A/N: The next chapter will be up soon!


	3. Chapter 3

An Unexpected Happening: Chapter Three

Rein Elanor

Disclaimer: I _am_ J.R.R. Tolkien; I have come back from the dead to write crappy fanfiction. I _am_ George Lucas; I write excellent love scenes. I _am_ J.K. Rowling; instead of spending time with my children and writing Book 7, I am writing about Snape and Hermione, a pairing I detest.

A/N: I love you guys for reading this.

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In preparation for sleeping and keeping watch for the night, Aragorn began building a fire. Snape watched the tall man scornfully, thinking about the uselessness of Muggles. He was prepared to watch Aragorn attempt to light the fire with those puny articles Muggles called "matches". He was not prepared for Gimli's sudden entrance into the equation. The dwarf stepped over to the little pile of wood Aragorn had collected and stacked, and with his back to Snape so he couldn't see what happened, lit the fire very quickly. Snape snorted and turned away. Muggles were still useless, but dwarves were a force to be reckoned with.

Elves on the other hand . . .Snape looked askance at the blond-haired and slender being. He looked like a prim and made-up Lucius Malfoy- or rather, what Lucius Malfoy wished he could look like. Legolas was striding up to Hermione. Snape could just catch their conversation, if he strained his ears.

"My lady," the elf was saying to Hermione, "May I offer you and your companion a coverlet? It will be cold tonight."

Hermione was blushing faintly, Snape noticed. "On, no, it's fine, thank you, er…sir," she said, clearly unsure of what to call Legolas. Snape's lip curled. She _would_ feel the need to be overly deferent to a good-looking man.

"Please take my offer as genuine. Lord Aragorn, the dwarf and I have three blankets between us, and we would like you and your companion to be warm." Legolas actually had the audacity to reach out and tough Hermione's hand warmly.

Hermione turned even redder. "Er…thank you very much, but we couldn't possibly deprive you three. You've done so much to help us already. And Snape…well, I don't know if I'd call him a _companion_, but I don't think he'd take kindly to the idea." She smiled at him, and this time her smile was real and completely confidant. "I very much appreciate your offer, though. Thank you, sir."

Snape turned away in disgust at the open look on the girl's face. Had she no sense of danger? She was in a strange land, surrounded by strange people, and she went around smiling like that at strange elves? Snape had always known she was foolish, but here was conclusive proof.

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Obi-Wan and Padmé were getting along much better. Aragorn had offered Padmé a blanket, just as Legolas had offered one to Hermione, and she, too, had declined. The Jedi Master and the Senator had settled down close to the fire, and were talking in low voices.

"The problem the Hutts present isn't simply how to control or stop their chief or even a chief family," Padmé was saying. "The problem is keeping that sort of lawless behavior out of the worlds in the Republic."

"That seems like such a defensive approach to a problem that could be better solved with a more comprehensive solution." Obi-Wan said. "If one could change the rules of the game, make it unprofitable for the Hutts to operate with their crime networks, I think the "problem" would disappear."

Padmé shook her head. "There are a lot of problems with a solution like that. First, even if you make it unprofitable for the Hutts to go on with their smuggling and so on, another crime lord will step up to the task. It's a never-ending problem. Perhaps we should make it mutually beneficial, so that we can operate in peace, side by side."

Obi-Wan smiled. "Hmm. Cooperating with the Hutts. An interesting idea, I must say, Senator."

She smiled back at him and said, "Why not? If we can get along with the Gungans, we can get along with anybody, wouldn't you say?"

They laughed, and the conversation drifted to the exploits of the infamous Jar Jar Binks.

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Snape looked distastefully at Hermione as she sat by the fire. Her face was lit by a rosy glow, and it seemed that small lights were dancing in her hair. He saw her shiver and wrap her arms about herself. The chit would probably catch a terrible Muggle fever and die here in the wilderness. And he would be the one explaining to Albus. There was only one thing to do.

"Miss Granger," he said quietly. She looked up at him. It was quite dark now, and his face was in shadow.

"Sir?" she replied, a hint of cold steel in her voice. She wasn't feeling exactly chummy towards him at the moment.

Snape repressed a flinch at the tone of her voice. "You appear to be inadequately dressed," he said stiffly. "Please allow me to lend you my cloak."

She looked up at him again, surprise written all over her face. "Er…thanks, Professor," she finally managed to get out. He settled the cloak around her small frame, and made to walk away from the fire again.

Hermione, seeing that he intended to walk away, said quietly, "Professor Snape?"

He turned, and the firelight caught his face full on. All the angles in his face were standing out.

"Yes, Miss Granger?" His voice, which she had expected to be impatient, was softer than she had heard it in a long time.

Hermione patted the ground next o her. "Will you sit with me?"

Snape looked at her for a moment, his face impassive. Finally as Hermione's neck was starting to cramp up from craning up at him, he came and sat beside her. They sat in companionable silence, surprising both of them. They listened to a story Legolas the elf was telling, something about long ago and far away, it sounded like. The elf's voice had a lovely ring to it, like bells.

Hermione found her eyelids drooping and her head nodding as she listened to Legolas. Snape noticed it too.

'The chit will probably topple into the fire,' he thought snidely. He moved closer to her, and she put her head on his shoulder. Bushy hair tickled his nose, and he patted it down a bit. In spite of the hair, Severus was surprised at how right she felt at his side.

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Across the fire, Obi-Wan and Padmé were watching all this with knowing looks.

"Five credits says that they are lip-locked by tomorrow," Padmé said cheerfully to the Jedi.

Obi-Wan looked shocked. "My Lady, as a Jedi, I cannot place wagers! You know it is against the Code!"

Padmé rolled her eyes. "Like that's ever stopped you before."

"Fine," Obi-Wan retorted. "But I say ten credits, and it'll be day after tomorrow."

"Deal."

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"These offworlders seem awfully reluctant to actually form partnerships," Gimli noted to Aragorn. "When do you think they'll realize that they're suited to one another?"

Aragorn looked at the Dwarf. "I could not say, my friend. I know that the love between my betrothed and I was sealed and mutual in one moment." His grey eyes grew misty as he looked into the fire, seeing Arwen, no doubt.

Gimli ruined the moment by saying stoutly, "I wasn't sure whether my wife was a woman or not at first, because she was wearing full battle gear at the time."

Legolas laughed, and patted his friend on the shoulder. "Perhaps we can help our offworld friends to find happiness?" he said quietly, with a hint of something Aragorn couldn't identify in his voice.

"Ah! Be matchmakers, you mean!" Gimli cried. There was no doubt about his enthusiasm for the idea.

Aragorn looked thoughtful. "I'm not sure," he said. "Would it be right? Perhaps there are prohibitions on their matches that we are not aware of."

The dwarf was indignant. "Prohibitions? On a perfect match? Nonsense! When a female and a male are right for one another, it is our duty to help them realize it!"

Aragorn seemed unconvinced. "I am not sure it is our duty to meddle in their lives, my good friend Gimli."

Legolas smiled. "Do not attempt to hide your true wishes, Aragorn. It is two against one. And you want to do it as much as we do."

Aragorn grinned, for the first time since Moria. "What's the plan?"

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A/N: While I was typing this last bit, I had to wonder. Do you think that last bit was too stupid? Should I change it?

By the way, you guys have been truly fantastic. I've loved your responses. They have made me actually post, which is unusual for me. My other story hasn't been updated in far too long. Thank you so much for the feedback. I will endeavor to continue to please you.


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